Page 9 of Holding Her Heart

I’d love to. Eden relaxed her shoulders, glancing behind Aster. Everything appeared to be perfectly fine here. Eden wasn’t needed. “I could probably come with you for one.”

“Brilliant.”

Eden almost gasped when Aster beamed a huge smile. One so huge it almost knocked her through the wall.

“Let me get my stuff together. My equipment. I can meet you up there if it’s easier for you?”

“Y-yes.” Eden swallowed. Why had the air suddenly dried up in here?

“Perfect. I’ll see you in a few. No rush, though.”

Eden watched Aster turn and move through the crowd on the dance floor. Why had she so readily agreed to a drink with Aster? And why did her heart pick up every time Aster smiled at her? You need a friend and some fresh scenery. This can only be a good thing. And Eden would make sure it was a change for her. She was tired of Liam or nothing.

* * *

Aster sat at a table close to the edge of the rooftop. Her face felt heated, and her hands were clammy. She’d just…invited Eden up here. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but now, as she sat alone swirling her whiskey, Aster believed she’d made a mistake.

You’ve spent half of the day staring at her.

And she really had. She was also certain that she had images of Eden on her camera. Nice pictures, of course, but it was crossing the line, and Aster knew it. Grace would know what to do, and Aster had considered calling her, but as she lifted her glass from the table, the lift doors opened, and Eden walked out of them. Okay, smile and act cool.

This was ridiculous.

“Hi. Sorry I took a while. I got talking to the bride,” Eden said, pulling out a chair. “She’s singing your praises.”

“Oh, I’m sure she’s not.”

“Mmhmm. She is.”

Aster sipped her whiskey. “She hasn’t even seen the pictures yet. She could hate them.”

“We both know that’s not going to happen.” Eden looked pointedly at Aster, one corner of her mouth upturned. Okay, Aster was a sucker for a woman with a sexy smirk…and Eden definitely had one.

Instead of focusing on the drop-dead gorgeous woman next to her, Aster continued with their conversation. “She could, though. She could hate them, and then you’d be disappointed.”

The frown lines across Eden’s forehead deepened. “Where has that confident woman I saw earlier gone?”

“I-I don’t—”

“When you have that camera in your hand, you go off into a world of your own. I saw it with my own eyes. You knew exactly what you were doing, where to be, and I’m certain that if I’d asked you to climb up a fifty-foot ladder to get the perfect shot, you would have.”

Aster was surprised by everything Eden had said. In all honesty, she wasn’t sure her boss had even noticed she was in the room today, so to hear that Eden had effectively ‘studied’ her, piqued Aster’s interest. “Nothing else matters when I have the camera in front of me.”

“Let me get a drink and then we can get comfortable up here.” Eden stood, but the barman came towards her. She ordered a whiskey for herself and another for Aster.

“So, I was thinking,” Aster started. She’d done a lot of thinking last night, and she knew what she wanted deep down. Something guaranteed. “Is the offer to join the team still on the table?”

Eden’s eyes shone. “One hundred percent.”

“Then I’d like to accept.”

Aster held out her hand, but Eden turned and threw her arms around her instead. Shocked was her first reaction…aroused, her second. “That’s brilliant. I’m so happy you agreed.” Eden pulled back, holding Aster at arm’s length. “So happy.”

“M-me too.” Aster ignored the shiver that ran through her body. Eden was pretty…that’s all this was.

Eden jumped back. “Sorry. That was completely inappropriate.”

“It’s fine. It’s nice to see someone who is excited to have me around.”

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